Deutsche Welle, 25 November 2013
Several
hundred Amazon workers in Germany have walked off the job demanding better pay
and working conditions. But the online retail giant remains defiant, accusing
labor unions of blackmail which is hurting customers.
Amazon's
logistics centers in Leipzig and Bad Hersfeld, both in eastern Germany, were
hit by one-day industrial action in which some 200 and 300 workers respectively
walked out, German labor union Verdi said Monday.
The strike
comes with the demand of a collective bargaining agreement including higher
wages and better working conditions for Amazon employees, the union said. Verdi
wanted Amazon staff paid according to a wage deal for the German mail order and
retail sector, which was better than for the logistics sector currently in
place at Amazon, it added.
Amazon has
repeatedly rejected the demand arguing its staff at the Bad Hersfeld and
Leipzig logistics centers received pay which was above average by the standards
of the industry. Moreover, the Verdi labor union wasn't Amazon's partner in
collective bargaining because wages were primarily negotiated with the firm's
works council, said Amazon's German logistics chief Dave Clark.
“We will
not be blackmailed in to cooperating with an organization that threatens to
ruin Christmas for German children,” he told Monday's edition of German
newspaper Die Welt.
Amazon
employs around 9,000 workers in Germany, which has come to be the online
retailer's biggest market outside the United States. Sales in Germany grew almost
21 percent in 2012, reaching $8.7 billion (6.4 billion euro).
Verdi's
strike action on Monday, which followed brief walkouts in May, June and
September, have had no impact on shipments, Amazon spokesman Stefan Rupp told
Reuters news agency.
uhe/hc (Reuters, AFP, dpa)
Related Article:
 |
Online
retailer Amazon employs more than 20,000 people
across its eight warehouses
during its peak Christmas season
|
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.